an anamcara exploring those close encounters of the liminal kind

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The Cold Moon: December’s Full Moon [Ephemera]

It’s coming up to another full moon. I love them. In ancient times (and in some parts of the world today) many would reckon their calendars by the movement of the moon and stars. Though we might not do that today in our workplaces, there is nothing to stop us from doing so in our own time, and this is what I would suggest. There are benefits.

To gaze at a full moon and ponder, to give thanks to the Source of All is a joy and a privilege. If you and I can spend some time gazing at the Earth’s celestial companion this Sunday, even if its just for a few minutes sipping a hot drink – and yes, I have (re-)discovered Horlicks, then I do believe we would benefit by stepping out of mechanical time and appreciating nature and nature’s cycles (more so).

‘There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.’ 1 Corinthians 15:41, The Book

The next full moon takes place this Sunday, on 3 December 2017 in the constellation of Taurus (rising above the horizon from a London, Uk aspect at about 4.30pm in the ENE, higher in the sky as the evening progresses), and is quite near a bright start, and that will the be Aldebaran (some 65.12 light years away). It’s that time of the year, there’s ‘magic’ in the air, and it’s a time of liminality as we move closer to the climax of the month, so do revel in this ‘thin-place’ and ponder upon this wonderful upcoming full moon.

This moon will be a supermoon or a moon giant.

This mean that the moon in its slightly changing orbit around the Earth will be a little closer, and therefore will appear about 14% bigger than usual – and because of an optical illusion it will appear even larger if you view it as it rises just above the horizon. All quite natural, and no cause for alarm – though that hasn’t stopped some newspapers causing alarm and suggesting calamity.

‘The moon was reigning over their world, glowing its full splendour to all those willing to look up.’ Irina Serban, Full Circle

This full moon is known as the Cold moon to ancient and some latter-day Celts and Druids, the Oak moon to those of medieval England and others, and the Christmas moon to others. For those that follow such things, 3 December is also the feast day of St Lucius a second century British chieftain who died on this day in AD180, though some scholars doubt his existence.

Moon Poem: Above The Tower

Above the tower – a lone, twice-sized moon
breaks upon the city’s domes.
‘Art thou pale for weariness of climbing heaven and gazing on the earth,
dreaming serenely up the sky?’

Slipping softly through the sky,
pour down your unstinted nimbus, sacred moon,
so tremulously like a dream,
to keep me company.
Thy beauty makes me like the child.

Thou silver deity of secret night,
yours is the light by which my spirit’s born.
She’s the mistress of the night.
All love to be out by the light of the moon.

It mesmerizes lovers and dreamers.
A ghostly bridge ’twixt heaven and me.

(Tadhg)

The poem above is a ‘found poem’, that ‘is a type of poetry (newly) created by taking words, phrases, and sometimes whole passages from other sources and reframing them as poetry (a literary equivalent of a collage) by making changes in spacing and lines, or by adding or deleting text, thus imparting new meaning.’